Thursday, September 3, 2009

I've always associated coffee with Halloween. Bean and I seem to always be brewing and drinking some when we're working on our stuff or watching horror movies on the weekend. The Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks has always been an annual tradition and a sign of the Fall season arriving. Man, I love coffee.

Two years ago, I saw a web banner ad for The Coffee Fool and clicked on it. I read the site intro and testimonials and wondered if I had been missing out on an aspect of one of my favorite things. Not wanting to be left out, I ordered some. A few days later it arrived and like those testimonials on their site, it changed the way I drink coffee. Apparently, coffee sitting in bags on shelves in supermarkets, and even in coffee houses, has been roasted weeks and months ago. Fresh coffee is considered fresh only fourteen days after it's roasted. After trying the coffee from The Fool, it was pretty clear - fresh coffee, roasted only days ago, is not the coffee I have been drinking my whole life. It's dark, very sweet, and super smooth, even at room temperature.

It seems that the best way to drink coffee is to get green beans and roast them yourself right before grinding and making a pot. I'm nowhere near that point yet, so I'll use The Coffee Fool until then.

Disappointing side note: I tried their pumpkin spice flavor and it seemed too overpowering and scented, rather than flavored. So I'd recommend non-flavored beans for your first exposure to The Fool. But that's just me. I knew someone who loved pumpkin spice coffee from this company.

I hear what you're saying about recently roasted beans. There's a place here in Toronto that delivers. We've had it a couple of times, and it makes such a difference.

I can buy whole beans from the grocery, but I can't stomach pre-ground coffee anymore.

And you can never 'unknow' something. Now that I have freshly ground coffee every morning, I detest my once beloved Tim Hortons cup of coffee. Oh Tim Hortons. I'm sorry we had to break up. I still have a place for you in my heart, just not in my belly.

Still, I've come to expect he moved on after I left him. And I'm at the age where I know there's no sense in lamenting over ex's.

Actually, the story behind Tim Horton's the man (and Toronto Maple Leafs hockey star) is a sad one. In a nut shell, he had a bad leg break. The team kept him but cut his salary. He opened a hamburger place that eventually became the coffee hub we know now. He died in a car crash after taking alcohol & pain killers. His wife foolishly sold the company outright after he died, losing any claim to the huge franchise. And one or two of his daughters ended up as employees there instead of being on the board of directors.

But those sesame seed bagels with herb and garlic cream cheese are a delight! So come on by Tim Hortons!